St. Louis is playing defense. We’re all focused on the early maturation of Sam Bradford, which is smart, because he’s playing during the two-game Rams winning streak (haven’t been able to write that since October 2008) like he’s been there before. But the real key to the Rams becoming respectable right now is St. Louis giving up 19 points in the two-game win streak, and holding quarterbacks to a 55-percent accuracy rate, and putting some decent heat on quarterbacks…

I’ve always said it is very difficult to separate the defense and offense on the Rams and this is all the more certain now that the Rams are playing much better defense when their offense is improving. Not to take anything away from the defense, because they have been great. But, the Rams offense has stayed on the field longer, which keeps the defense fresh late in the game. Last season, the Rams defense would hold tight for a few quarters and then fall apart late in the game because they were completely exhausted. Now, it is the opposing offenses that are exhausted as the Rams defense wears them down. Plus, now the Rams defense is able to play with a lead that allows them to do so much more with blitzes and coverage.

Give an assist to Bradford, too, for moving the chains enough to win. In the past two weeks, he’s led the Rams to 50 points, with scoring drives of 85, 82, 79 and 60 yards.

Last season the Rams could not sustain drives because they were unable to overcome any sort of error or mistake. One dropped pass or penalty would doom the Rams to punt. Now the Rams have the ability to pick up the 1st and 20 or the 1st and 15 and sustain their drives for points. The Rams could not do it without Sam Bradford.

For now, the Rams will take the bad Bradford (six interceptions through four games) with the good Bradford (he has the Rams competitive again) and know a guy as accurate as Bradford will keep them in games better than any quarterback they’ve had since Marc Bulger, when he was protected well.

The scary thing about Sam Bradford is not how good he has been through his first 4 career NFL games, but it is how much better he can be and he knows it. When he overthrows a pass, he knows he should be throwing that pass better and he will in the future. When he does not drop in a perfect pass to Brandon Gibson in the corner of the end zone, Bradford knows he has to make that throw in the future. That drive and that kind of football intelligence is what is going to make Sam Bradford a great quarterback in the NFL.